cjh
Hank Scorpio
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Post by cjh on Mar 21, 2019 19:13:25 GMT -5
Does having shows with those names streaming on WWE Network count as WWE using them? If so, I would imagine they would be considered common law trademarks. I could be wildly wrong, feel free to correct me, but for trademark to stand, you need to be shown to be using it consistently so if someone else were to use it and you don't do anything with it, they have a right to claim trademark over said thing because you didn't protect it. There's a difference between "We have the older Bash in the Beaches on our service" and "Welcome to the biggest party of the summer, Bash in the Beach 2019!"I'm not sure. WWE, Impact, and ROH use lots of names they don't have trademarked as part of their respective video libraries.
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Post by Feargus McReddit on Mar 21, 2019 19:16:55 GMT -5
I could be wildly wrong, feel free to correct me, but for trademark to stand, you need to be shown to be using it consistently so if someone else were to use it and you don't do anything with it, they have a right to claim trademark over said thing because you didn't protect it. There's a difference between "We have the older Bash in the Beaches on our service" and "Welcome to the biggest party of the summer, Bash in the Beach 2019!"I'm not sure. They use lots of names they don't have trademarked because they're part of footage that they own. But that also doesn't mean someone else can't claim ownership of it unless you buy it off of them. Like, when WWE was promoting the War Games DVD or the match, MLW could have very easily sent a Cease and Desist preventing them from doing it because they own the trademark or had WWE pay fees for using their owned name but WWE eventually brought it off of them because, well, they wanted to use it more often and didn't want to be walking the legal tightrope.
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cjh
Hank Scorpio
Posts: 6,767
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Post by cjh on Mar 21, 2019 19:34:18 GMT -5
I'm not sure. They use lots of names they don't have trademarked because they're part of footage that they own. But that also doesn't mean someone else can't claim ownership of it unless you buy it off of them. Like, when WWE was promoting the War Games DVD or the match, MLW could have very easily sent a Cease and Desist preventing them from doing it because they own the trademark or had WWE pay fees for using their owned name but WWE eventually brought it off of them because, well, they wanted to use it more often and didn't want to be walking the legal tightrope. That's what I'm saying. I'm not sure if that's the case because there are a million examples of promotions not owning a name but still using it to make money in conjunction with their video library. It's not just WWE, either, as Impact and ROH actively do it as well.
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Post by Final Countdown Jones on Mar 21, 2019 19:38:33 GMT -5
Does having shows with those names streaming on WWE Network count as WWE using them? If so, I would imagine they would be considered common law trademarks. I could be wildly wrong, feel free to correct me, but for trademark to stand, you need to be shown to be using it consistently so if someone else were to use it and you don't do anything with it, they have a right to claim trademark over said thing because you didn't protect it. There's a difference between "We have the older Bash in the Beaches on our service" and "Welcome to the biggest party of the summer, Bash in the Beach 2019!" It's a bit more complicated than that, but old use of a trademark does not give you perpetual right over it, especially if you let it lapse due to misuse. WWE will always own the old footage, but it is so old that WWE would have an uphill battle trying to claim they're due the trademark forever over it. Especially if the case can be made that WWE never used the trademarks, they simply bought a company that did and never used those names; it can be messy and I'm sure there's a bunch of weird niche legal precedents to consult on it that I don't know because that's case law, but the old shows don't mean as much as WWE's activity with the trademark both in recent years and in regards to their actual filings of it.
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Post by hulksmash87 on Mar 22, 2019 9:14:20 GMT -5
Wish he would have trademarked spring stampede I always liked that name
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Post by XaviersSS2015hair on Mar 22, 2019 10:05:08 GMT -5
Didn't I read on this site that a small indy trademarked Halloween Havoc not that long ago? Or is that something I imagined?
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MiLB Fan
Fry's dog Seymour
Posts: 20,517
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Post by MiLB Fan on Mar 22, 2019 10:20:34 GMT -5
Didn't I read on this site that a small indy trademarked Halloween Havoc not that long ago? Or is that something I imagined? Someone did, though I don’t know what KBN, Inc. is. WWE also has an application for “Halloween Havoc” and has filed an opposition to this company’s attempt to claim it. Word Mark HALLOWEEN HAVOC Goods and Services IC 025. US 022 039. G & S: T-shirts; Baseball caps and hats; Clothing for wear in wrestling games; Graphic T-shirts IC 041. US 100 101 107. G & S: Entertainment in the nature of wrestling contests; Entertainment services in the nature of a wrestling club; Entertainment services, namely, wrestling exhibits and performances by a professional wrestler and entertainer; Providing wrestling news and information via a global computer network Mark Drawing Code (5) WORDS, LETTERS, AND/OR NUMBERS IN STYLIZED FORM Serial Number 87954784 Filing Date June 8, 2018 Current Basis 1B Original Filing Basis 1B Published for Opposition December 18, 2018 Owner (APPLICANT) KBN INC. CORPORATION NEVADA 187 E Warm Springs Road Las Vegas NEVADA 89119 Description of Mark Color is not claimed as a feature of the mark. The mark consists of the wording "Halloween" centered over top of the wording "Havoc". Type of Mark TRADEMARK. SERVICE MARK Register PRINCIPAL Live/Dead Indicator LIVE I don’t think this is real. The wwe bought those names twenty years ago. It’s real. Word Mark BATTLEBOWL Goods and Services IC 041. US 100 101 107. G & S: Entertainment in the nature of wrestling contests; Entertainment services in the nature of a wrestling club; Entertainment services, namely, wrestling exhibits and performances by a professional wrestler and entertainer; Providing wrestling news and information via a global computer network Standard Characters Claimed Mark Drawing Code (4) STANDARD CHARACTER MARK Serial Number 88344271 Filing Date March 18, 2019 Current Basis 1B Original Filing Basis 1B Owner (APPLICANT) Cody Runnels INDIVIDUAL UNITED STATES Attorney of Record Michael E. Dockins Type of Mark SERVICE MARK Register PRINCIPAL Live/Dead Indicator LIVE Word Mark BUNKHOUSE STAMPEDE Goods and Services IC 041. US 100 101 107. G & S: Entertainment in the nature of wrestling contests; Entertainment services in the nature of a wrestling club; Entertainment services, namely, wrestling exhibits and performances by a professional wrestler and entertainer; Providing wrestling news and information via a global computer network Standard Characters Claimed Mark Drawing Code (4) STANDARD CHARACTER MARK Serial Number 88344284 Filing Date March 18, 2019 Current Basis 1B Original Filing Basis 1B Owner (APPLICANT) Cody Runnels INDIVIDUAL UNITED STATES Attorney of Record Michael E. Dockins Type of Mark SERVICE MARK Register PRINCIPAL Live/Dead Indicator LIVE Word Mark BASH AT THE BEACH Goods and Services IC 041. US 100 101 107. G & S: Entertainment in the nature of wrestling contests; Entertainment services in the nature of a wrestling club; Entertainment services, namely, wrestling exhibits and performances by a professional wrestler and entertainer; Providing wrestling news and information via a global computer network Standard Characters Claimed Mark Drawing Code (4) STANDARD CHARACTER MARK Serial Number 88344260 Filing Date March 18, 2019 Current Basis 1B Original Filing Basis 1B Owner (APPLICANT) Cody Runnels INDIVIDUAL UNITED STATES Attorney of Record Michael E. Dockins Type of Mark SERVICE MARK Register PRINCIPAL Live/Dead Indicator LIVE
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Post by OVO 40 hunched over like he 80 on Mar 22, 2019 10:28:07 GMT -5
Well Vince is an idiot for letting the copyright expire.
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Post by Feargus McReddit on Mar 22, 2019 12:18:34 GMT -5
Well Vince is an idiot for letting the copyright expire. Again, this is a man that let a MLW that was nowhere near where it is now get the rights to the name of a match he has all the footage for expire two years after he brought WCW in a company that sued the same company years ago for assuming to their viewers that Diesal and Razor Ramon invaded WCW. It’s do as I say, not as I do with the man.
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Post by abjordans on Mar 23, 2019 4:34:54 GMT -5
Well Vince is an idiot for letting the copyright expire. I don’t know if this makes Vince an idiot. He hasn’t used any of these concepts in close to 20 years, maybe he just doesn’t want the trademarks and doesn’t care if Cody has them. They bought back War Games because they wanted to use it.
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Post by Feargus McReddit on Mar 23, 2019 4:50:17 GMT -5
Well Vince is an idiot for letting the copyright expire. I don’t know if this makes Vince an idiot. He hasn’t used any of these concepts in close to 20 years, maybe he just doesn’t want the trademarks and doesn’t care if Cody has them. They bought back War Games because they wanted to use it. Sure but that doesn’t seem very logical if you have the footage for stuff and want to repeatedly advertise it. A company of WWE’s size usually keeps IPs to their chest so that nobody else can make money from them even if they have no intention of using it. Disney aren’t going to make a Monkey Island movie any time soon but they’re sure as hell going to fight to keep it and make sure nobody else can.
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MolotovMocktail
Grimlock
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Post by MolotovMocktail on Mar 23, 2019 4:55:41 GMT -5
Has there been any word if AEW plans on having the NWA Title be defended on their shows? I could see Cody wanting it, if he wants to keep their traditions going.
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Post by abjordans on Mar 23, 2019 10:45:59 GMT -5
I don’t know if this makes Vince an idiot. He hasn’t used any of these concepts in close to 20 years, maybe he just doesn’t want the trademarks and doesn’t care if Cody has them. They bought back War Games because they wanted to use it. Sure but that doesn’t seem very logical if you have the footage for stuff and want to repeatedly advertise it. A company of WWE’s size usually keeps IPs to their chest so that nobody else can make money from them even if they have no intention of using it. Disney aren’t going to make a Monkey Island movie any time soon but they’re sure as hell going to fight to keep it and make sure nobody else can. I’m just saying that just because he doesn’t hoard every trademark and IP like Disney does doesn’t make him an idiot.
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Post by Feargus McReddit on Mar 23, 2019 10:51:13 GMT -5
Sure but that doesn’t seem very logical if you have the footage for stuff and want to repeatedly advertise it. A company of WWE’s size usually keeps IPs to their chest so that nobody else can make money from them even if they have no intention of using it. Disney aren’t going to make a Monkey Island movie any time soon but they’re sure as hell going to fight to keep it and make sure nobody else can. I’m just saying that just because he doesn’t hoard every trademark and IP like Disney does doesn’t make him an idiot. No but it won’t look good for shareholders if someone makes money on something you had copyrighted and didn’t protect very well out of incompetence or general ignorance on the matter.
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Post by Natural Born Farmer on Mar 23, 2019 22:51:04 GMT -5
Well Vince is an idiot for letting the copyright expire. I don’t know if this makes Vince an idiot. He hasn’t used any of these concepts in close to 20 years, maybe he just doesn’t want the trademarks and doesn’t care if Cody has them. They bought back War Games because they wanted to use it. The names would confer prestige on AEW as a promotion, and would be a dog whistle to old school fans. Vince really should have anticipated that someone would try this at some point and taken appropriate action.
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Mozenrath
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Post by Mozenrath on Mar 23, 2019 23:02:35 GMT -5
Has there been any word if AEW plans on having the NWA Title be defended on their shows? I could see Cody wanting it, if he wants to keep their traditions going. I'm really not sure. It obviously worked out excellently for both parties at All In, since Cody's win and all that definitely elevated the title's profile versus where it was before, and Cody obviously won't mind having "NWA world heavyweight champion" on his list of accomplishments, in spite of its years in obscurity, but there's a difference between a super show collaboration and a full-on promotion. Then again, if they're cool having AAA promoted champs on the show, maybe they're cool with Billy and his belt hanging out. Corgan, on the other hand, can be a tricky man to predict, and has walked away from money before due to not feeling it, so, uhh, ball's in his court, probably.
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Post by Error on Mar 23, 2019 23:09:23 GMT -5
The more interesting thing to me was Cody using Runnels and not Rhodes on the fillings. He's been saying he had his name legally changed but that would seem to say otherwise I'd think.
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Post by Mighty Attack Tribble on Mar 23, 2019 23:32:27 GMT -5
I’m just saying that just because he doesn’t hoard every trademark and IP like Disney does doesn’t make him an idiot. No but it won’t look good for shareholders if someone makes money on something you had copyrighted and didn’t protect very well out of incompetence or general ignorance on the matter. It costs between $250 and $2000 to register and/or renew trademarks. WWE have owned thousands of trademarks over the years, so renewing even a good chunk of them to prevent others being able to make money from them would cost millions of dollars. It's better to let someone else use a name or cocept that they have no intention of ever using themselves than pouring money into something that will never make a dime in return.
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Post by Feargus McReddit on Mar 23, 2019 23:36:29 GMT -5
No but it won’t look good for shareholders if someone makes money on something you had copyrighted and didn’t protect very well out of incompetence or general ignorance on the matter. It costs between $250 and $2000 to register and/or renew trademarks. WWE have owned thousands of trademarks over the years, so renewing even a good chunk of them to prevent others being able to make money from them would cost millions of dollars. It's better to let someone else use a name or cocept that they have no intention of ever using themselves than pouring money into something that will never make a dime in return. And you’d be right and logical if this wasn’t big business we were talking about and there wasn’t a tonne of watchful eyes that have big stakes in companies ready to go to meetings and such and have the ability to say “Why didn’t we do that and get that money?” and question why they have shares at all. And at this point, with the amount of hoarding of talent WWE does, something that costs way more than holding a trademark, they can afford to keep their own trademarks.
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Post by Mighty Attack Tribble on Mar 24, 2019 0:17:46 GMT -5
It costs between $250 and $2000 to register and/or renew trademarks. WWE have owned thousands of trademarks over the years, so renewing even a good chunk of them to prevent others being able to make money from them would cost millions of dollars. It's better to let someone else use a name or cocept that they have no intention of ever using themselves than pouring money into something that will never make a dime in return. And you’d be right and logical if this wasn’t big business we were talking about and there wasn’t a tonne of watchful eyes that have big stakes in companies ready to go to meetings and such and have the ability to say “Why didn’t we do that and get that money?” and question why they have shares at all. And at this point, with the amount of hoarding of talent WWE does, something that costs way more than holding a trademark, they can afford to keep their own trademarks. A big business that spends almost as much as it makes. If I'm a shareholder I'm asking why we're paying millions for trademarks we'll never use when profits are down. Talent they can use or choose not to is worth more than names of PPVs from a long-dead company.
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